Apple Music - page 19

Apple surprised investors with its best Q4 earnings report ever today. The outrageous numbers dispelled doubts about the iPhone-maker’s strategy — and pushed Apple closer to becoming the world’s first trillion-dollar company.

With the launch of the iPhone X just hours away, Apple CEO Tim Cook had a lot to be happy about during the earnings call with investors. Analysts quizzed Cook and Apple CFO Luca Maestri on everything from iPhone 8 sales to how Apple plans to monetize its augmented reality efforts.

Here’s what we found out:

Apple is set to unveil its last earnings report of 2017, and it’s expected to be one of the company’s biggest Q4 results ever.

Wall Street analysts are eager to see how many iPhones Apple sold during the quarter, which included a few days of iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus sales at the end. Apple CEO Tim Cook and CFO Luca Maestri will be hopping on the call with investors at 2 p.m. Pacific today. Naturally, we’ll be here live-blogging all the action.

Come join the fun:

Apple will give investors their first insight into iPhone 8 sales, right on the eve of the iPhone X launch.

The final Apple earnings call of 2017 takes place Thursday, November 2, at 2 p.m. Pacific. Apple’s fourth fiscal quarter ended right after the iPhone 8 started shipping. The results aren’t expected to be record-breaking, but this first glimpse should give us a better idea of how monstrous Apple’s holiday season will be.

This is what to watch for:

Album covers take center stage in the latest ad for Apple Music. The funky new video that was pushed to Apple’s YouTube channel this morning features an eclectic collection of quick art shots inspired by the likes of Fleetwood Mac, Sia, Eminem, Drake, FKA Twigs and many more.

Check it out:

Apple has updated its Apple Watch Series 3 battery guidelines following the rollout of watchOS 4.1 on Tuesday.

The update adds big new features, such as Apple Music and Beats 1 streaming, that significantly impact the usage you’ll get in between charges.

Apple Watch Series 3 owners can now get all the features they were promised from Apple’s new wearable at launch, thanks to a new watchOS update that brings some big new additions.

After months of testing, watchOS 4.1 was released to the public this morning. The update adds a number of performance improvements and changes, including LTE streaming for Apple Music.

watchOS 4.1 | What's new?

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Apple is giving developers advance notice to get their apps ready for the HomePod experience.

Along with releasing new firmware for the unreleased HomePod smart speaker, Apple also notified developers that iOS 11.2 adds SiriKit for HomePod as a way to integrate voice-only experiences into the app.

Leaked release notes for the watchOS 4.1 golden master reveal big changes coming to Apple Watch. Alongside fixes for a whole bunch of bugs, Apple will finally add Apple Music streaming, the ability to listen to live radio on Beats 1, and GymKit.

Billboard is making big changes to the way it measures the hottest songs in the country — and that’s great news for Apple Music.

Streams from paid subscription services like Apple Music and Amazon Music Unlimited will gain influence on the charts starting in 2018, according to Billboard, which revealed its changes today.

Apple shared a new trailer for its upcoming documentary “Give Me Future” that follows the electronic group Major Lazer on their trip to Cuba to become the first major American act to play in the communist country.

The documentary shows Diplo, Jillionaire and Walshy Fire as they plan and execute their concert in Havana. What was expected to be a show with ten thousand or so people turned into a massive concert with a crowd of half a million fans.

Watch the trailer:

The wonderfully useful universal search function on Apple TV now supports a bunch of new services. Apple has added a number of popular providers in many countries, including BBC America, FX Now, and its own Apple Music.

Developers received a fresh new batch of beta updates today, just one week after Apple seeded the last set.

iOS 11.1 beta 3 is the biggest of the updates, bringing a bunch of new emojis to the iPhone and iPad along with some other refinements and improvements. Apple also released the third beta builds for watchOS 4.1 and tvOS 11.1.

Apple senior vice president Eddy Cue has confirmed that the company wants to bring its Apple Pay service to India. Apple also has plans to make big improvements to Maps and Apple Music in what Cue says is one of its most important markets.

Apple executives Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre got construction of their new academy at USC officially underway this week during a groundbreaking event on campus.

Following the continuing allegations about sexual harassment by Weinstein Company movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, Apple has reportedly scrapped plans for an Elvis Presley biopic original series, which would have been produced by the Weinstein Company.

The episode of Carpool Karaoke: The Series featuring the late Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington will be made available next week.

While Carpool Karaoke is normally available only to paying Apple Music subscribers, this episode will be available for free on Facebook. Initially there was some question as to whether it would ever air, due to the tragic nature of Bennington’s untimely death.

Apple Music has secured an exclusive documentary based on the upcoming Beautiful Trauma album from Pink. It will be available for streaming this month, featuring behind-the-scenes footage that gives fans a sneak peek at what goes into making a Pink album.

Microsoft is throwing in the towel when it comes to music streaming and downloads by announcing the closure of Groove Music.

The service will continue running through 31 December, after which customers will no longer be able to download or stream music. In the meantime, Microsoft is encouraging subscribers to migrate their music collection over to Spotify, while Groove Music Pass subscribers will receive a 60-day free trial of Spotify’s premium tier in order to entice them.

Hollywood is racing to do business with Apple in hopes to help the iPhone-maker create its first breakout TV series and movies.

Apple’s LA-based TV execs, Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht, have been lining up meetings with some of the top names in town, according to a new report that sheds some light on the company’s TV strategy. Everyone from Jennifer Aniston to Steven Spielberg has pitched the duo. But in true Apple fashion, they’re being very picky about what they say yes to.

Big changes have been made to the App Store with the release of iOS 11 and Apple is ready to help users get acclimated in its latest series of ads.

The company published four new videos that showcase some of the new features. iOS 11 users will immediately notice the layout of the store is completely different thanks to the new Today section that makes finding new apps easier. Some of the UI changes have taken some cues from Apple News and Apple Music.

Check it out:

Apple has announced that Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives, a documentary chronicling the career of the legendary music executive behind a wide range of iconic artists, will arrive on Apple Music October 3.

Check out Apple’s newly-released trailer below:

Apple Music and Apple Watch are a match made in tech heaven, based on the latest ad from Apple.

The company published a new one-minute ad on its YouTube channel today that highlights the new cellular capabilities of Apple Watch Series 3. Apple’s captivating commercial features skateboarder Killian Martin performing a dazzling array of tricks indoors while jamming to music on Apple Watch.

Check it out:

It may be more than 40 years old, but Apple is an incredibly hot brand with young folk. A new piece of research confirming that comes from consulting firm Fluent, claiming that Apple Music is the most popular audio subscription service among both Generation Z and Millennials.

They’re also a whole lot more likely to pay for music subscriptions than older folks, which certainly bodes well for Apple Music’s future.

Apple knows no one really wants to pay $1,000 for a phone, but that’s how much it plans to charge for iPhone 8. To make it feel a little less expensive, the company will reportedly throw in some extras — including free music and storage.

Just days after Apple pulled the plug on its annual U.K.-based Apple Music Festival after a ten year run, Spotify has announced that it will by heading to the United Kingdom to stage a music festival of its own.

The so-called “Who We Be” festival will debut November 30 at London’s Alexandra Palace. Its lineup will include the likes of British grime and hip hop artists Dizzee Rascal, Bugzy Malone, Cardi B, Giggs, J Hus, and Stefflon Don.